Ruidoso Downs council might revamp zoning rule

Longtime Ruidoso Downs property owner Kenneth Allgood has had horses on his property ever since living there, but sometimes took them to Arizona with him, violating the 90-day contiguous use rule for the city. (Elva K. Österreich — Ruidoso News)

Ruidoso Downs Council might revamp zoning rule

Two parties brought their concerns to the Ruidoso Downs City Council chambers Monday precipitating a promise from council members to revamp existing zoning statutes.

The debate comes up as horse owners and potential horse owners question a 90-day rule relating to residential property in the city.

The issue is a hot topic because whether a property is zoned agricultural (can have horses) or residential (cannot have horses) makes a huge difference in the value of the property in Ruidoso Downs.

The current 90-day rule says a property that is zoned residential but has always had horses (or any traditional agricultural use) on it, can still be used for horses (or whatever the traditional use is), as long as the animals are there continuously. If the property is without horses for more than 90 days, it can no longer be used for them.

The council heard from Kathy Kolt, who bought property with the express purpose of bringing her horse to Ruidoso Downs with her. Kolt had asked the Planning and Zoning Commission to rezone her property back to agricultural use and was denied. She appealed the decision to the council.

"Everybody knew I bought that land because I wanted to bring my horse up there," she said.

Kolt shared a letter from the land owners she bought the property from, William and Betty Ferrell, which stated to their knowledge the property has always been zoned for agriculture and they were never notified their properties would be rezoned.

"There is a problem with non-communication," Kolt said. "In talking to all the different neighbors, one out of 10 knew that the property was rezoned."

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Kolt said city officials may have done things legally when the rezoning occurred but they did not do what the people of the town wanted. She said "people don't listen to just one station," implying that notification only in the newspaper was not enough.

"I spent a lot of money buying something and I never got what I bought," she said. "The neighbors always thought they could have residential horse property."

Showing photos and charts to council members, Kolt said there is no one who doesn't want her horse out there on her land.

"You all can blow me out of the water," she said to the council. "Or you can ruin my land for me."

City Attorney John Underwood asked Kolt if she checked the zoning before purchasing the land. Kolt said she did not, she was going by the information the real estate company gave her that it was horse property.

Darien Ross, the real estate agent who sold the property, said she never gets zoning information from the city either.

She said there were horses in the neighborhood, she drove past horses there. She said that Ruidoso Downs is all about horses, with the racetrack and the Hubbard Museum of the American West.

"When I look at the property, if it has residences around, it is residential," she said.

Another Ruidoso Downs property owner stood up to testify. Wayne Williams said he spent good money to be zoned agriculturally and he would be very upset if the Planning and Zoning Commission suddenly decided to change it.

"From my understanding, the man who originally owned this property owned it before planning and zoning was even a thing," Williams said. "If my property is no longer agricultural, the property loses value. This is the same thing. He brought that as an investment property and this city has no right to devalue his property."

Williams said the zoning changes gives the property 50 percent less value.

Planning and Zoning Director Stephen Dunigan said in 2001 new zoning ordinances were adopted by the city and the official map of that zoning was produced in 2003. There has been no change in the zoning of the property Kolt is talking about since 2003. At the time there were publications, letters and advertisements, he said.

Dunigan quoted the statute regarding the 90 days that was in place at that time.

Underwood asked Dunigan if the use of horses had continued on the property, if the property would have continued to be allowed to have horses and Dunigan said yes.

Underwood explained there is a law against spot rezoning and so Kolt cannot simply request her own property be rezoned. Spot rezoning applies to one property zoned differently than all the other properties around it.

"She could go to neighbors, and if they all change, she would have a better case," Underwood said.

Dunigan agreed, if several property owners requested rezoning, and surrounding property owners' concerns are considered, it would make more sense to rezone the area, he said.

Ross added when people call the realtors looking for property, sometimes they will say they want anything as long as it's not in Ruidoso Downs.

"I don't think that should be the stigma," she said. "It does make a difference. Two weeks ago there was a huge drug bust. But horses are OUR drugs. I would think that those are the kind of people you want in your area. Once you take away that, property value drops."

Allowing horses not only makes that property value go up, she said, but it also makes everyone else's property value go up and brings in potential gross receipts taxes.

"It's more than just Kathy Kolt," Ross said. "This is huge and it's huge opportunity."

After Ruidoso Downs Mayor Gary Williams closed the hearing, the council discussed the issue.

"I think the 90 day thing is ridiculous," said council member Judy Miller.

She said if she took her horse to the veterinarian for something, or somewhere else and it happened to be away for more than 90 days, it should still be able to come home.

"I would hate for anyone to say you can't come home," she said.

Underwood suggested the council ask for a process to amend the planning and zoning code.

"When you (the Council) say it needs to be amended and ask that Ms. Kolt make the application that would not be a spot zone but a neighborhood application, we would have to change that law," Underwood said.

City Clerk Carol Virden said the process of adopting the code could be completed by the second meeting in August.

In the meantime, Underwood recommended, the city could choose to withhold enforcement of the 90-day rule until the second meeting in August.

The councilors voted in favor of beginning the process of changing the code and withholding enforcement of the rule.

Another property owner, Kenneth Allgood, also brought a similar complaint to the council.

Allgood said he has been living on Wood Lane in Ruidoso Downs since 1989. Recently he discovered his land was rezoned in 2008 and he had no knowledge of it.

He said the rezoning of his property as residential while most of the property on the street still is agricultural was a mistake and he asked the council to fix the mistake.

"There have been horses there as long as anyone can remember," Allgood said. "I love and own the oldest horse property in the community."

He said he has been going to Arizona from January to April for the past 10 years to participate in team-roping competitions and that is a bit longer than 90 days.

From the audience, community member Ron Ritter spoke up. He said he was on the Planning and Zoning Commission when the rezoning was first done. He said the 90-day included improvements, not just horses.

"The facilities that people have for the horses is part of that," Ritter said. "I don't think it's part of the horse, I think it's part of the physical real property."